5 LESS IS NOT NECESSARILY MORE. Being a child of modernism I have heard this mantra all my life. Less is more. One morning upon awakening I realised that it was total nonsense, it is an absurd proposition and also fairly meaningless. But it sounds great because it contains within it a paradox that is resistant to understanding. But it simply does not obtain when you think about the visual of the history of the world. If you look at a Persian rug, you cannot say that less is more because you realise that every part of that rug, every change of colour, every shift in form is absolutely essential for its aesthetic success. You cannot prove to me that a solid blue rug is in any way superior. That also goes for the work of Gaudi, Persian miniatures, art nouveau and everything else. However, I have an alternative to the proposition that I believe is more appropriate. ‘Just enough is more.’

I rarely get a chance to go online during the day, but by the time I get on in the evening, BJ has added a ton of new things to our tumblr (Can’t take any credit. He does all the work!). I love checking Thuy’s too.

During our trip to Portland, a lot of my relatives were staying over at my uncle’s place, so he kindly put us up in a cozy little room he built in the backyard. It was awkwardly dubbed the honeymoon suite (we get it, y’all want kids), but we could see everyone through the windows and vice versa – not so romantic. But it was surrounded by his beautiful garden and there was no doubt he put care and love into that space.

Guess who? I always find BJ’s sketches of different figures laying around the house – and always on the back of articles/scraps. This one was on the closet floor, staring up at me when I flipped the lights. I wonder if I can convince him to do these in a sketchbook so I don’t miss any of them.

Trinkets from the trip (Beth gave me a photo she took on our wedding day. Excited to see the rest)

Back from a (sadly) short trip to NYC. Although it was only for a weekend, we managed to fit in a lot—even some sleep—and I’m already plotting things to do when we come back. Saturday was mostly devoted to the Capsule Show, the trade show that was the main reason for our trip. It was a visual feast of uniquely beautiful clothes, designs, accessories, and breezy rooftop view of Chelsea! A huge highlight was meeting Jennifer, Anne and Jenny. After seeing their work in person, I’m even more excited for the new Odette collection and, like countless former perfume skeptics, I’m now a full-on MCMC convert. If only it were easier to decide which scent to get …

Since Capsule took most of our time, there was none left for museum visits, window shopping, etc., but that’s okay since good company and food made the work and stress worth it. Coincidentally, during our stay, BJ’s younger brother Jeff was passing through the city during his Seattle-to-Hanover road trip, and we caught him for lunch. On our last night, we joined our friends Beth and David for a late Southern-tinged dinner at Delicatessen of delicious fried chicken and mac n’ cheese. The next morning, we took their recommendations and an enjoyed a Southern-comfort-food breakfast at Red Rooster in Harlem. Not bad for 1.5 days, right?

Leaving NYC was expectedly bittersweet. It has always been a special place for us—our first trip together in college, our honeymoon, introducing my sister Thuy to all our favorite places, reunions with friends, etc. In other words: the trips are always deeply meaningful—not just vacations—despite being so fleeting. Coming and going always feels so sudden, like such an extreme movement between wildly different places (for instance, South Bend, IN to the Lower East Side and back), that it only hits me once I’m home that I was actually there.

The morning before the wedding, BJ and I gave ourselves a few hours for brunch. We wanted to squeeze in at least one Portland establishment during our quick trip. In an Asian family, eating out is a hard task because every aunt and uncle we visited en route insisted that we sit down and eat (and they all are amazing cooks). It ended up taking longer than we expected to get ready, but once we hit Broder, we + my cousins had 45 minutes to eat and drive to the ceremony. Ahhh, it was so worth it. I’m still thinking about the breakfast sandwich (can’t go wrong with adding a runny egg!). Before going to Portland, I check out Bonnie‘s recap of her trip, and she was spot on!

Back from a very short trip to Portland for a family wedding. And this time, I was related to both sides (they met last year during our wedding!) Unfortunately we barely got to spend time with everyone – I’m glad we squeezed in whatever time we could. I didn’t plan out the previous week so well and stayed up till 3am grading, but more posts and lots of pictures to come!